Clip for anchoring sheet metal centering to supporting joists or beams



Aug. 18, 1959 G. G. GREULICH 2,900,056

CLIP EoR ANcHoRING SHEET METAL CENTERING TO SUPPORTING JOISTS OR BEAMS Filed Jam. 11, 1957 '1291 iii'm -Ja ja 'Il l l Il 'Y l MH "miam" .umili i l I I I1 mln:

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2,000,050 Patented Aug. 18, 1959 CLIP FOR ANCHORING SHEET METAL CENTER- ING TO SUPPORTING J OISTS OR BEAMS Gerald GfGreulich, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., assignor t Ceco Steel Products Corporation, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Delaware The present invention relates to anchoring means for the purpose of fastening sheet metal or corrugated sheet centering material for form work to the top of supporting joists or beams and more particularly to a novel clip for rigidly securing the centering material to the joists.

While it is customary to use corrugated sheet material on top of steel joists for providing permanent form work for concrete poured on top of such sheet material as a floor or roof material and with the sheet material fastened by welding or other securing means, in such prior fastening means the only tie between the concrete slab and the steel joist is in the bond of the concrete to the sheet metal form or centering material. It is an important object of the present invention to provide a novel means for secur ing the centering material or form work to the top of the joists in such manner as to most effectively anchor the concrete slab matrix thereto.

A further object is to provide a novel centering clip member for anchoring sheet metal centering to the flanges of a supporting joist orbeam, the clip member being so constructed and arranged that it may be readily projected through and anchor the centering material ontoy the supporting flanges of the joist or beam.

The present invention further comprehends an anchoring clip for fastening sheet metal to the top of supporting joists or beams and provided with novel adjustable gripping prongs capable of piercing the sheet materialY and .anchoring the clip and sheet material to the flanges of the ;supporting joist or beam.

Another object of the present invention is the provision iof a novel adjustable clip construction for quickly and :securely attaching the centering material to the top anges of the supporting joists or beams with a minimum of effort by eld labor. v

The present novel clip member is so formed as to provvide a top ridge, spaced prongs and driving stubs or projections adjacent the opposite ends, the latter for drivling the prongs through the overlapping side edges of the :sheets of centering material and adjacent the marginal edges of the joist anges, and when the driving stubs are .attened outwardly against the centering material the Y prongs are bent or moved inwardly and upwardly into contact with the corner or edge of the supporting flanges. The top ridge is so formed and arranged that it too may be driven down or flattened and thereby force or draw H the prongs inwardly and toward each other into tight anichoring engagement with the top flanges of the joistkwhen .necessary to effect maximum tightness.

It is another important feature of the present invention Ito form the depending prongs and the upstanding driving stubs of the clip members in such manner that when the .prongs are moved or bent into engagement with the supporting flanges of the joist upon flattening of the driving stubs, there is provided a multiple bend at the point where each prong engages an edge of the flange that :substantially augments or contributes to the gripping power of the clip member by permitting each prong to yassume a flatter angle beneath the ange.

Another important advantage of the novel clip con- 2 struction is that it provides for optimum adjustment for the clip need not be accurately positioned or aligned with respect to the flanges of the joist or beam to which itis anchored. By the novel disclosed means for and manner ofattachment, substantial misalignment is compensated for by the novel manner in which the anchoring prongs; are causedto engage beneath and be drawn tightly against the adjacent edge of the flange on the joist.

f To facilitate its installation and anchoring the cliptc the flanges of the supporting joist or beamythe 'anchoringprongs of the clip are adapted to be readily andeasily driven through the sheet Amaterial by the aligned driving stubs or projections and spaced apart sufficiently to more than span the outer marginal edges or top surface of Ythese anges, the clip also having means for retractingor draw= ing these prongs into anchored position. By reason of suchspacing of these prongs and the means for retracting themv into adjusted position for anchoring, it is unneces'f' saryy to accurately align the prongs of the clip with Vthe flanges of the joist to which it is to be attached.

While the centering sheet material is pierced by the prongs, the openings produced by such piercing are completely' closed by the tail piece when the clip is attached andi anchored in operative position, so that concrete cannot leak through as it is being poured upon the centering or sheet material. This feature not only saves concrete but eliminates expensive clean-up of hardened concrete drippings on iloors immediately below the oor slab being poured.

Further objects ,are to provide a constructionv of maximum simplicity, eiiiciency, economy and ease of assembly andl operation, and such further objects, advantages and capabilities as will later more fully appear and are ,inherently possessed thereby.

In the drawing:

Figure l is a fragmentary view in perspective of a floor or roof deck showing a plurality of the novel clip members of the present invention anchoring the corrugated sheet metal centering or form work to the top ofthe supporting joists or beams.

Fig. 2 is a top plan View of one of the novel clip members.

Fig. 3 is a view in side elevation of one of the clip members driven into the overlapping edges of the sheet metal centering and showing the initial stage of assembly, the anged joist being shown in vertical cross section.

Fig. 4 is a View in side elevation of the clip member of Eig. 3 but showing the second or succeeding stage of assembly.

Fig. 5 is a view in side elevation of the clip member of Figs. 3 and 4, but showing the third or nal stage in themethod of assembly where the top ridge of the clip is driven down or bent for further retracting the prongs to assure maximum tightness, when necessary. In this View the prong for anchoring the concrete slab to the supporting member is yshown bent up into nal position.

Fig. 6 is a View in end 'elevation of the novel clip construction. j

Referring more particularly to the disclosure in the drawing, there is shown an illustrative embodiment of the novel clip construction 10 for anchoring sheet metal centering material or form work 11 to the top flanges 12 and 13 of the angle members 14 forming the top chord of Vthe'supporting joists or beams 15. This sheet metal material generally comprises corrugated sheets 16 forming the permanent forms for the concrete oor or Vroof Inaterial 17v that is poured on top of this sheet material. The present invention is concerned with the novel clip members 10 that are applied through the side lapQof the edge corrugations or the end overlap-s or lintermediate portions of the sheets 16 at suitably spaced intervals along each joist or beam 15.

Each clip member comprises a strip of deformable metal but of suitable gauge to give it sufficient rigidity for the purpose intended. Adjacent the opposite ends of each strip the metal is punched out to provide spaced depending and inwardly inclined prongs or projections V18 and the ends formed with upwardly projecting and outwardly inclined driving stubs or punching legs 19 aligned with the prongs. Intermediate these driving stubs 19 is provided an upwardly projecting portion forming an inclined top ridge or bridge 20 from which is punched out and bent up a prong 21.

Each prong 18 is tapered at its end to provide a point 22 capable of piercing and being driven through a single thickness or the overlapping edges or ends of adjoining sheets 16 of the centering material 11 with the prongs spaced apart a distance greater than the width of the top flanges of angle legs 12 and 13 whereby these prongs adequately span these top flanges of the spaced supporting members 14 that form the top chord of the supporting joists or beams 15 as shown in Fig. 3.

These joists are shown as of open metal assemblies including the top chord comprising the spaced apart angle legs 12 and 13, a bottom chord comprising spaced apart parallel bars 23. and connecting web members 24 bent into a substantially zigzag shape with the lower bends of these web members projecting into the space between the parallel bars 23 and welded or rigidly connected thereto, and the upper bends projecting between and welded or rigidly aflixed in that position to the spaced angle legs 12 and 13 of the supporting joist 15.

After the pointed prongs 18 have been driven through a single thickness or the overlappingr edges or ends of adjoining centering sheets 16 by a driving force applied to the stubs or punching legs 19, the latter are flattened or bent downwardly and outwardly in the manner shown in Fig. 4, and in which operation the prongs 18 are simultaneously rotated to elevated position with the formation of a multiple bend 25 adjacent the point where each prong engages the supporting flange 12 or 13 of the joist.

To obtain most effective engagement of the spaced prongs 18 with the flanges 12 and 13, the top ridge or bridging portion 20 may be depressed or flattened as in Fig. 5. Such flattening is capable of drawing the prongs 18 toward each other a substantial amount so that a positive locking of each clip member to its joist is assured, even though the clip member when applied is not centered or aligned with the joist in the manner shown in Fig. 3. All that is necessary to assure effective anchoring is that the prongs span the flanges 12 and 13 when driven through the lapped sheet material. After the clip is drawn up to anchor the sheet metal centering firmly to the supporting beam, the prong 21 in the upper portion of the clip is bent up so as to extend into and anchor the concrete slab.

By this novel clip construction and its manner of assembly the concrete poured onto the sheet material or centering is anchored to the joist or other supporting structural member by flowing into and about the top ridge and into the depressions formed by the manner of anchoring the prongs to the flanges of the joist or structural member. The openings in the sheet material resulting when the prongs 18 are driven therethrough and forced toward the edge of the supporting joist are fully covered by the overlapping stubs or punching legs 19 of the clip when in anchored position, thus preventing the passage of concrete through the openings, with the multiple bend 25 at the point where each prong engages a supporting flange of the joist or structural member contributing substantially to the gripping power of the clip Vby perm1tt1ng each prong to assume a flatter angle under- The bent-up prong 21 in the' neath the engaged flange. upper portion. of the clip extends into and anchors the `concrete slab to the supporting structural member.

Having thus disclosed the invention, l claim:

l. A clip for anchoring sheet metal centering to the` opposed top flanges of a supporting joist, beam or flangedA member, comprising a strip of deformable metal provided` with spaced, depending prongs each having a point for piercing the sheet metal centering beyond the outer marginal edges of said top flanges, an upstandiug driving stub aligned with each prong yfor causing the prongs tov j pierce the centering beyond the outer marginal edges of said top flanges, said driving stubs when bent outwardly and downwardly against the sheet metal centering tilting said depending prongs upwardly and inwardly against the outer marginal edge and the underside of the flanges of said supporting joist, and a top ridge provided between said driving stubs which when depressed draws the bent prongs toward each other to effectively anchor these prongs and the sheet metal centering to the top flanges, said top ridge having an upwardly projecting prong for anchoring a concrete slab to the supporting joist.

2. A clip for anchoring sheet metal centering to the opposed top flanges of a supporting joist, beam or flanged member, comprising a strip of deformable metal provided with spaced, depending prongs each having a point for piercing the sheet metal centering beyond the outer marginal edges of said top flanges, an upstanding punching leg aligned with each prong for causing the prongs to pierce the centering beyond the outer marginal edges of said top flanges, said punching legs when bent outwardly and downwardly against the sheet metal centering tilting said prongs upwardly and inwardly against the outer marginal edge and the underside of the flanges of said supporting joist and providing a multiple bend and depression adjacent the point where each prong engages the edge of its flange of the supporting joist to thus contribute substantially to the gripping action of said clip under said flange.

3. A clip for anchoring sheet metal centering to the opposed top flanges of a structural member, comprising a strip of deformable metal provided with spaced pointed prongs projecting downwardly and inwardly from the body of said strip, driving projections extending upwardly and outwardly and in substantial alignment with said prongs for driving each prong through the sheet metal centering, said prongs being spaced apart a dis- .tance greater than the width of said top flanges to position a prong adjacent to but spaced from the outer marginal edge of each flange, and a ridge provided on the top of the clip between said driving projections with the sides of said ridge spaced apart so that as said sides are moved together the spacing between said prongs is reduced, said driving projections being of greater width than said prongs and overlapping and covering the openings formed by said-prongs when the latter are driven through the sheet metal centering and the driving proj ections are flattened down to anchor the prongs on the marginal edges of the top flanges.

4. A clip for anchoring sheet metal centering for supporting concrete upon the opposed top flanges of a structural member, comprising a strip of deformable metal punched adjacent its ends to provide spaced pointed and inclined prongs projecting downwardly and inwardly from the body of said strip and similarly inclined driving projections of greater width than and eX- tending upwardly and outwardly and in substantial alignment with said prongs for driving said prongs through the sheet metal centering beyond the outer marginal edges of said flanges, and an upwardly projecting ridge between said driving projections which when depressed and bent outwardly draws the prongs toward each other and into anchoring position with the flanges, said driving projections when depressed and bent outwardly overlapping and covering the openings formed by said prongs when the latter are driven through the sheet metal centering and the driving projections are flattened down to anchor the prongs on the marginal edges of the top flanges.

5. Means for anchoring sheet metal form work onto the top flanges of supporting structural members, comprising a clip of deformable metal having inwardly and downwardly inclined pointed prongs adapted to be driven through said sheet metal with said prongs spaced apart a distance greater than the width of said top flanges of a supporting member, upwardly and outwardly inclined driving projections one for each of said prongs, and an upwardly projecting top ridge formed between said driving projections, each driving projection when bent downwardly and outwardly against the top of the sheet metal bending and forcing its prong 11pwardly and inwardly against the marginal edge of and under the adjacent flange on the supporting member and forming a multiple bend adjacent where each prong engages its supporting flange, and when the upwardly projecting top ridge is depressed it draws the prongs into tight contact with the marginal edges and underside of said flanges.

6. Means for anchoring sheet metal form work onto the top flanges of supporting structural members as set forth in claim 4, including a prong formed from the References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,138,121 Lachrnan May 4, 1915 1,389,866 Georgeson et al. Sept. 6, 1921 1,590,424 Crowe .lune 29, 1926 2,132,295 Hawkins Oct. 4, 1938 2,460,722 Waara Feb. 1, 1949 2,476,207 Brown July 12, 1949 2,563,242 HeXdall Aug. 7, 1951 2,639,010 Weber May 19, 1953 

